our experience of graduates damien clancy managing director rusal aughinish alumina

Our Experience of Graduates

Damien Clancy

Managing Director

Rusal Aughinish Alumina

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Introduction to Aughinish

The Challenge

How we meet the Challenge

Our “take” on the UL Graduate Attributes

What stops a graduate from being hired?

The Ideal

Table of Contents

Introduction to Aughinish

4 Damien Clancy 2012

Bauxite to Alumina

Bauxite Rock from West Africa and South America

Alumina

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Aerial View


Importance to the Region

• €40.0 million in Aughinish salaries alone

• €55.0 million in Materials and Services in Ireland

• €20.0 million Capital Investment 2011

• € 3.3 million in rates to Limerick County Council

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Impact on the Region

• 450 Aughinish Employees• 250 Full-time Service Contractors• 50 Ancillary Services:

– Canteen – Cleaning Services– Landscaping

Over 700 jobs on-site– Over half of these have third-level qualifications in a variety of

disciplines

The Challenge - Communication


Organisation Design

• Values and Principles– Performance, Accountability, Recognition, Integrity, Trust

• Flat organisation – Self Directed – 50 “self managed teams” (5-8 members)– Teamwork based– Reduced supervision– Accountable autonomy– Increased engagement

• Business Management Systems

• Continuous Improvement Focus

Management Team

Facilitators/Co-ordinators

Work Teams Work Teams

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UС RUSAL: Moscow centered

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1983 1985 1995 1999 2007

Anaconda 25%

Billiton 35% 35%

Alcan 40% 65% 100%

Glencore 100%

United Company RUSAL

100%

Fifth Owner

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Communication assumptions

• Culture model

• Cultural compatibility

• Bridging cultural gap

• “They” can be Owners, Government Bodies etc

Basic assumptions

Norms and Values

Artifacts and products

How We Meet the Challenge


Educational Requirements

• Ever increasing number of roles requiring Degree and above

• Mechanical Engineers• Chemical Engineers• R&D Engineers• Electrical and Instrumentation Engineers• Control Systems Engineers• Industrial Chemists• Administration• Increasingly – operator positions are becoming gateway

positions

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Graduate Key Skills and Abilities

• Strong report writing and presentation • Good communication and mediation• Ability to listen• Development and delivery of training

packages• Ability to work on own initiative in a

team environment• Ability to influence • Ability to conduct efficient and effective

meetings and reviews• Ability to work under pressure, speed

and accuracy• Ability to multi-task

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Information Reliant

• Day to day working• Requires succinct

approach• Accuracy• Good use of text• Grammar• Spelling

– Not text-speak


A Taste Of The Issues

• Report writing – no student writes reports….same ones in circulation since I was in College

• Difficulty understanding that “not a graduate” does not mean “not an expert”

• Need to understand that “Wikipedia” is not always right!• Dependency on twitter/texting language… cul8r

The reality of work• “I don’t like all this paperwork”• “Why do I have to explain what I’m doing”• “Why do I have to go to all these meetings”• “I’m an engineer – I don’t have to be good at grammar”


General Writing Skills

• A review of “Requests For Appropriation” of funds (Capital Spend) over the past year has identified the following top 5 list of poor writing skills

1. Use of jargon/technical words

2. Poor spelling

3. Poor grammar

4. No key message/poor awareness of target audience

5. Not following guidelines

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Why clear and concise matters…

• It must justify WHY we have to spend money NOW.• It has to make sense to:

– the originator/sponsor– the people operating the equipment (is it what they want?)– the manager - that it fits the business priorities– the financiers/purse string holders - that it stacks up against

the many other demands

• The approver – may be in another country– have a different first language– have a different academic background

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Use of Jargon / Technical Terms

• We need Engineers to assume the reader: – has only a limited knowledge of the project– does not know the Aughinish plant– knows little of the process in the plant– is not an engineer

• Problem: – High usage of technical terms and plant specific terminology

without adequate referencing

• Examples:– HFO : Heavy Fuel Oil– EPA : Environmental Protection Agency

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Spelling

• Common misspelling/misuse of words, particularly similar-sounding words e.g. – effects/affects– It’s (It is) / Its (belongs to..)– Their)/They’re (they are)/There (that place)– Been/being

• Over-reliance on spell checker – ‘Their coming too see if its reel’ …will pass spell check

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Precision

• Soon• As soon as possible• A daily output of 750 per day

• Correspondence• Illustration• Communication

Instead of…

: • Tomorrow/ next week• Before Friday 13th

• a daily output of 750.• E-mail,• Graph• Report, telephone call

Use…

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At all times – think of the Reader


However..

• Poor writing and communication skills will limit your career “outside” Aughinish

• Poor writing and communication skills may limit your career “inside” Aughinish….

but they are unlikely to get you fired.


Where do you fit in in the social network in your organisation?

Nicholas Christakis: The hidden influence of social networks. TED May 2010


Ability to interact and fit-in is crucial

• This person will not have a future in the organisation.• It’s down to poor social skills• How can the University assist this individual during his

undergraduate studies?


Communicating with others

• Because of the Plant size– E-mail is the preferred tool – Intranet based logs/forms– Standardised reports

• Far too easy for a graduate to fall into the trap of only using IT-based communication

• Danger– No real personal relationships with others– No ability to influence on key issues – face-to-face discussion– Missing out on those who don’t use IT

Our “take” on the UL Graduate Attributes

ResponsibleArticulateProactiveCreativeCollaborativeKnowledgeable


Responsible

• In our organisation – responsibility comes quickly– No supervisors – we facilitate

• Reliance on good engineering standards – No “police” – No bureaucracy– High on accountability– High on Knowledge Management

Engineers need to be self-driven, honest, personally accountable


Articulate

• Decision makers are not their peers - dealing with others is key:– “Outside” agencies -- Operators– Managers -- Craftspeople

• Information Technology – Over-dependence on IT-based communication

• Inability to tailor the message to suit the audience

• Lack of face-to-face people skills– Insufficent collaboration and meeting practice


Proactive

• Graduate programmes no longer include a map to “where you will be in 10 years time”

• Organisational horizons are much shorter

• To ensure employability graduates must:– be self-driven– have a thirst for knowledge– have a commitment to their employability growth– understand the benefits of horizontal career moves– seek learning wherever they can– recognise that learning is a life-long pursuit


Creative

• Confidence in ability to challenge the status quo

• Not “afraid to fail” but recognise the “above and below the waterline” issues

• Bring and share new ideas

• Comfortable with new technologies– Bring the team with them

• Embrace change– Cushion it for others


Collaborative

• Graduating is not the end – it is the start– “You are the 17th Chemical Engineer that I have dealt with in

this section; what are you going tell me that you think I don’t know already?”

Question posed by a 30-year operating veteran

• The views of experienced colleagues/operators/crafts people are key….but – Ability to listen and make an informed decision is critical– Not everything people say is of value– Re-inventing the wheel can be a great past-time of graduates

• This is often a source of entertainment for the veterans– Who and what to rely on is a key judgement call


• Critical Thinking & Problem Solving• The role of an engineer is primarily problem-

solving– Able to apply knowledge to a situation– Able to investigate

• What the data says• What the people say

– Able to provide a solution– Confident in selling it

Knowledgeable

What stops a graduate from being hired?


Immediate “No” at the interview

• Answers to technical questions– “It’s about that size” – “It was a big blue one”

• Attitude– “Well you wouldn’t really understand this”– Dismissive of the non-engineer on the interviewing panel

• Lack of interaction– Head down, mono-syllabic answers– Overly nervous – unable to cope with interview stress

• Insuccinct– Rambling answers to simple questions

• Lies– Usually caught on the simple things


“No” during Co-op/Probation

• Not self-starter• Individualistic rather than team• Does not create relationships• Does not create any impression - forgettable• Comes with problems and not solutions• Difficulty coping with range of ages/disciplines• Attendance• Texting

– at lecture – seemingly accepted– at a work meeting – not excusable

• Answering mobile phone during meeting• “Tuning-out”

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The Conundrum

• QCA of over 3.5• Second Primary Degree in

related area - technically brilliant

• Little collaborative work experience

At work…• Did not interact• Did not ask questions• Preferred office to field• Don’t know if he got “it”?

Graduate Engineer A• QCA of just over 2.0• Limited technical knowledge• Extensive collaborative

work-experience

At work…• Communicates well• Creates relationships• Explains himself• Happy to get hands dirty• Can explain the why of

suggested solutions – and gets money to action

Graduate Engineer B


Confidence in Applying Knowledge

• Technical skills are a given• Other skills are what differentiates• Being technically exemplar does not mean you will

succeed– Does not mean you will get the job

• Co-op exposure is a distinct advantage– Part-time/summer work in any sphere helps

• Graduates do not “know it all” – but many believe they do

• Those who succeed are those who accept they must continue to learn

The Ideal


The Ideal

• Technical ability• Helpful• Responsive• Builds relationships• Multi-tasker• Versatile – mundane and complex tasks equally diligently• Works on “fitting-in”


The UL Graduate Attributes

• Responsible• Articulate• Proactive• Creative• Collaborative• Knowledgeable

• Quality writing and communication are key to all• You have identified the potential gaps• You need to ensure that they are filled

Thank you

our experience of graduates damien clancy managing director rusal aughinish alumina

Documents

aughinish slide

challenge slide

grammar slide

owner slide

multitask slide

aerial view slide

south america alumina

limerick county council